Thursday, April 4, 2013

Gluten Free Pesto Chicken Parmesan

When I think of comfort food I always gravitate toward Italian dishes. Since my eating habits have changed I haven't really indulged in some of my old favorites like manicotti, rigatoni bolognese or chicken Parmesan. It had a lazy Sunday a few weeks ago and decided to put an end to this nonsense. I found gluten free Italian breadcrumbs and set out to make g-free chicken parm!I did a little switch up with this recipe and instead of topping with red sauce and mozzarella, I added a bit of pesto, Parmesan and then red sauce. It was absolutely delish! I served it with my new favorite salad. Watch for the post to come soon.

Recipe:1 1/2 lbs chicken breasts (I used 6 breast tenders from Trader Joe's)1/2 cup olive oil1 1/2 cups gluten free breadcrumbs1/4 cup pesto sauce1/2 cup grated Parmesan2 cups tomato sauceDirections:1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour 1 cup of the tomato sauce in the bottom of a shallow baking dish. Set aside.2) Coat chicken in oil then dip in the breadcrumbs, shaking off excess before placing in the shallow baking dish.3) Once all chicken is coated and in the baking dish, spread a dollop of pesto on top of each piece of chicken. Then generously cover with Parmesan. Finally, top entire dish with remaining tomato sauce. Feel free to add more sauce if you'd like.4) Pop in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes.My friend Ashley came over for dinner that night and loved the meal. She said if I hadn't told her, she wouldn't have known I used gluten free breadcrumbs. I deem this meal a success!!